Rotary engine.



No. 858,073. PATBNTED JUNE 25, 1907. w. 0, KELLY.

ROTARY ENGINE.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 16, 1907.

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, No. 858,073. PATENTED JUNE 25, 1907. w. c. KELLY.

ROTARY ENGINE.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 16, 1907.

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WALLACE O. KELLY, OF HASTINGS, MICHIGAN.

ROTARY ENGINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 25, 1907.

Application filed January 16,1907. Serial No. 352,502-

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, WALLACE O. KELLY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Hastings, county of Barry, State of Michigan;

This invention relates to engines; it has for its object an improved rotary engine, in which there are pivoted buckets which oscillate to retract one end into a bucket carrier and project the other end across a steam chamber into which steam is admitted between the bucket and a fixed abutment. The ends of each bucket are alternately retracted and projected.

In the drawings :Figure 1, is a section longitudinal of the shaft of the engine. Fig. 2, is an elevation with a diagrammatic representation of the ports and the steam passages through the ports. Fig. 3, is a perspective of the bucket carrier. Fig. 4, is a perspective of an abutment. Fig. 5, is an elevation of an abutment.

The main case 1 of the engine, is com osed of a middle part 2, which has a cylin rical bore, and end parts whose internal faces are zones of spheres. The middle part of the case is provided externally with con ling sockets24, 25, into which are inserte the ends of the steam pipes.

In the sectional drawing which most completely illustrates the invention, that portion of the inner surface of the sphere between a and b, is indicated by a circle struck from the axis 5 of the pin on which the bucket 6 oscillates. The portion of the cylinder from a to b is indicated by a similar circle struck from the center 7. The center 5 is on the axis of the shafts 8 and 9, and on the axis of a pin which passes through the shafts. The center 7 is also on the axis of the shafts 8 and 9, and on the axis of a pin 10, which passes through the shaft 9 at right angles to the in having center 5, in the shaft 8. The shafts 8 and 9 are made in two pai ts which meet or approximately meet in a bucket carrier 12; the bucket carrier 12 has a cylindrical body with conical ends and with a s herical boss 32 at the center of each conical face; each boss engages in the spherical socket 11 of an abutment piece. There are two similar abutments with inclined faces arranged as hereinafter explained in parallel relation.

Each abutment 31, (31 is a portion of a sphere, one face of which is cut at right angles to the diameter of the sphere, and at right angles to the axis of the shafts 8 and 9; the abutment 31 is bored for the passage of the shaft 9, and the abutment 31" is bored for the passage of the shaft 8. The second plane surface of the abutment 31 is cut on an incline to the axis equal to the incline of the conical surface terminating the bucket carrier 12. The second plane surface of the abutment 31, is cut on a similar incline equal to the incline of the conical surface, terminating the bucket carrier 12. The two abutment pieces and the bucket carrier are assembled in the casing with the inclined faces of the abutments in parallel relation and with the bucket carrier engaging between them, and there is thus formed between each abutment piece and the bucket carrier a steam chamber on each side of the bucket carrier. and largest on that side which is farthest removed from the inlet and exhaust ports through which the steam is admitted into the chamber, and through which the steam is exhausted from the chamber.

The bucket carrier 12 is provided with sockets inwhich oscillate buckets 6 and 13, on their respective pivots. As the bucket carrier rotates, the buckets are forced by the abutment to rotate with a bearing edge in constant engagement with the abutment piece. The action may perhaps be best understood by noting the position of the two buckets 6 and 13 in Fig. 1. The bucket 6 is shown as in engagement with the abutment piece along its entire edge, and one end of the bucket is forced into the socket in the bucket carrier; the other end of the bucket is forced out from the'socket on the upper side of the bucket carrier and lies across the steam chamber which here is at its widest part. While the bucket 6 is in this position, bucket 13 extends across the abutment with which one surface is in contact and both ends of the bucket project into the steam chamber to an equal degree. The two ends of the bucket are made with edge surfaces that are in line; intermediate the ends is a curved portion that is curved to engage within the spherical sockets 11 of the abutment plece and rotate wlth tlns curved surface This steam chamber is broadest ITO flush with the spherical surface of the boss 32 at the center of the bucket carrier. At the thicker edge of the abutment piece, either 31 or 31?, are by-passes for steam; by-passes 15 and 17, are shown in Fig. 4. Between the by-passes 15 and 17, a portion of the abutment is left and the surface of this portion is flush with the plane surface of the abutment and has the function to prevent back-flow of steam. WVhen the bucket in its revolution passes over the entrance of the by-pass 17, (see dotted lines in Fig. 2, indicating position of bucket), only a small surface of the bucket at this end projects into the steam chamber, which is here very narrow. At the opposite side the steam chamber is broad and the surface of bucket exposed to it is correspondingly wide; the steam traveling through the long by-pass 17presses against the broader end (1, as indicated in Fig. 2. The end 6 is substantially balanced, or whatever preponderance of pressure there is at this point is due to theflow force of the steam. However, as the bucket carrier continues to rotate, the end 6 of the bucket emerges more and more, the end d, is crowded into its socket and a continually decreasing surface is exposed; the end 6 is crowded out of its socket and a continually larger surface is exposed until the end 6 of the bucket passes beyond the end of the by-pass 17; at the instant that the bucket reaches this point, the entire force of the steam is transferred from the end (i to the end e, giving to the end 6, an impact force of the steam behind it as well as the pressure force; at the same instant the end d travels into the region of the by-pass 15 and opens an exhaust for the steam which is now in front of the bucket, but which was at the rear of the bucket until the bucket took the position just described. On the opposite side of the carrier, a similarly constructed bucket is disposed at right angles to the first mentioned bucket and steam admitted similarly into the chamber occupied by this bucket acts in conjunction with the steam admitted into the chamber first mentioned to produce a continuous and uniform rotation.

All the parts of the engine are entirely symmetrical for both a direct acting and a reverse acting engine. To reverse the engine it is only necessary to turn the steam into it in the opposite direction.

In actual practice, an engine running at 4000 revolutions per minute can be reversed by turning the valve, and its reverse action will follow immediately.

By arranging the abutments with parallel faces, as shown in Fig. 1, the side forces exerted between the bucket carrier and the case are balanced and the machine runs evenly and smoothly.

The shafts 8 and 9 are preferably made in two parts and are provided with a wedge 19 inserted between the meeting ends of the shafts and, controlled by a pair of screws 20 and 21, by means of which the proper engagement between each oscillating bucket and the abutment can be readily adjusted. The several parts of the case are held together by bolts or screws 27 The shafts 8 and 9 pass through stuffing boxes 22 and 23.

What I claim is 1. In a rotary engine, in combination with a cylindrical casing provided with spaced inlet apertures adapted to admit a motive fluid, a bucket carrier engaging therewithin provided with a terminal having a conical surface and having sockets wherein buckets may engage, buckets pivotally supported by said carrier in planes transverse the one with the other, adapted by a withdrawal of one end within the socket in the carrier to avoid obstructing the flow of motive fluid past the same, and by the contemporaneous projection of the other end in the path of an advancing supply of motive fluid to receive its actuation therefrom, substantially as described.

2. In a rotary engine, in combination with a cylinder casing provided uith a central cylindrical section and with a terminal at the end of said cylindrical section formed as a zone of a sphere, a bucket carrier engaging in the cylindrical portion provided with a terminal having a conical surface, an abutment piece located in the spherical zone and having a plane face inclined to the axis of said cylinder with an inclination equal to the inclination of the coned terminal of said bucket carrier, a bucket carried by said bucket carrier pivoted therein, whereby the rotation of the said bucket carrier causes the bucket to swing with an edge in constant engagement with the inclined face of said abutment, substantially as described.

3. In a rotary engine, in combination with a cylinder casing provided with a central cylindrical section and with a terminal at the end of said cylindrical section formed as a zone of a sphere, a bucket carrier engaging in the cylindrical portion provided with a terminal having a conical surface, an abutment piece located in the spherical zone and having a plane face inclined to the axis of said cylinder with an inclination equal to the inclination of the coned terminal of said bucket carrier, a bucket carried by said bucket carrier pivoted thereto, whereby the rotation of the said bucket carrier causes the bucket to swing with an edge in constant engagement with the inclined face of said abutment, and suitable inlet and outlet ports, substantially as described.

4. In a rotary engine, in combination with a cylinder casing provided with a central cylindrical section and with terminals at each end of said cylindrical section formed as zones of a sphere, a bucket carrier engaging in the cylindrical portion provided with terminals having conical surfaces, abutment pieces located in the spherical Zones and having plane faces inclined to the-axis of said cylinder with an inclination equal to the inclination of the coned terminals of said bucket carrier, buckets carried by said bucket car rier pivoted thereto, whereby the rotation of the said bucket carrier causes each bucket to swing with an edge in constant engagement with an inclined face of its proper abutment, substantially as described.

5. In a rotary engine, in combination with a cylinder casing provided with a central cylindrical section and with terminals at each end of said cylindrical section formed as Zones of a sphere, a bucket carrier rotating in the cylindrical portion provided with terminals having conical surfaces, abutment pieces located in the spherical zones and having plane faces inclined to the axis of said cylinder with an inclination equal to the inclination of the coned terminals of said bucket carrier, buckets carried by said bucket carrier pivoted therein to swing, whereby the rotation of the said bucket carrier causes the bucket to swing with an edge in constant engagement with the inclined face of said abutment, and suitable inlet and outlet ports, substantially as described.

6. In a rotary engine, in combination with a steam tight casing a bucket carrier, a wedge-shaped abutment piece provided with a steam by-pass, that face thereof adjacent to the carrier being oblique to the plane of possible rotation thereof means whereby the bucket travels with one end thereof exposed to steam pressure and with the opposite end balanced while traveling along the by-pass through which steam is admitted, substantially as described.

7. In a rotary engine, in combination with a casing provided with motive fluid inlets suitably spaced from one another, a rotary bucket carrier engaging therewithin, a wedge-shaped abutment having one face parallel and the other face oblique with respect to the plane of possible rotation of the carrier, and a rotating bucket pivotally supported by the carrier with its exposed edge in constant engagement with the obliquely disposed face of the abutment, whereby the end portions of the bucket are caused to alternate in their exposure to steam pressure within the casing, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof, I, sign this specification in the presence of two witnesses.

WALLACE C. KELLY. Witnesses:

CHARLES F. BURTON, HAY E. KoTT. 

